New Delhi: As the election results and trends showed the Congress-NCP (Nationalist Congress Party) inching towards the half way mark, NCP leader Sharad Pawar today (Oct 16, 2004) said that the next Chief Minister of Maharashtra would be from the Congress whom his party would support.

He also said that credit also goes to Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde. "If you are getting majority, definitely the credit also goes to Chief Minister," Pawar told reporters.

The NCP leader said that Congress was going to select its leader and NCP would support and "this is our clear cut thinking."

It was the prerogative of the Congress to select its leader, he added.

The NCP leader ruled himself out as the Chief Minister saying that he stands by "the decision to come to Delhi and I am happy".

Pawar, however, ruled out merging his party with the Congress. "We will be happy to keep our separate identity and and cooperate with secular forces," he said when asked whether merger of his party with Congress was possible either in the short or long term.

Asked whether a young Union Minister like Prithviraj Chavan could be the next Chief Minister, he said, "I will be happy... However it is the prerogative of the Congress.. if Congress selects someone who has been elected to the State Assembly."